OK, as much as we (as brewers) love our beer to get sampled, there seems a magnitude of inconsistency in beer ratings across the board for as much as 85% of all beer ratings performed. I am talking about “cool hipster” users on social media applications (I.e. Untapped, and similar).

For those that love giving ratings here are some examples that I feel should be followed in effort to fill in the gap of feedback value brewers and breweries are most likely seeking when you write your rating.

There are brewers like me that truly feel beer making is at a high level, just as an artist can paint a picture. Beer making is as an opportunity to take chemistry to a form of artistic creative expression. As brewers, we typically strive for others to also like our artwork, but realize we can’t always please everyone. But please be mindful of the following when preparing your rating:

Don’t write your beer rating just as your drunk or buzzed. You can make a fool of yourself as well as others, or give more or less value to a beer rating then you really were if not intoxicated. Please just don’t do that. Take a photo of a label or something to remind you to do your rating at a later time when your sober. Or revisit the beer to give an appropriate rating.

If a bottled/canned beer taste has significant off flavor, out dated, stale, weak and inappropriate compared to most ratings of the beer -you may have gotten an irregularity. In handcraft beer making, although not intentional, this can actually happen. Beer sitting on shelves at warm temperatures can affect tastes; handcrafted beers are also still reacting and dynamically can alter in time. Please be patient. Am sure if you reached out to the brewery to ask if a particular taste is proper or not, they may just appreciate your respectful follow-up and who knows? you may get a free shirt out of it? Just saying…

If you go on a beer brewery tour, and a brewer/tour guide gives you a shot sample of how a beer tastes while in production, that is not a finished product –you can’t rate a beer while it is still in production. You should be honored they gave you an in-production sample. Doesn’t make any sense.

Give constructive feedback notes as to what you taste. Even if you don’t like the beer, it really helps a brewer know if consumers are receptive to the taste in the beer the brewer may or may not have intended.

If your not experienced enough of knowing how a particular style should taste like, perhaps refrain or postpone from giving a numerical rating of the beer. As a brewer, there are times where I need to sample many of the same styles all at once to know where numerically beers fall in rating; am not sure how ratings can be randomly justified unless tasting many of the same styles at a similar session?

If your not a fan of a particular style, don't just rate a beer as low because you personally just hate that style. Am personally not a fan of stouts. I am not into too much dark malty beers, but there are many people that truly are big fans. I can't justify placing a low rating on a beer because I personally don't love that style, it is a style for others -therefore I would have to refrain from a numerical rating since I can't objectively (in all fairness) value it.

Don’t let brewery marketing and media alter your actual rating of a beer. This rating platform should not be a popularity contest to impress or help you make new friends just because a beer is well marketed. What is your experience of tasting the beer? Be honest, professional –bashing to be popular with your friends can simply just make yourself look like an idiot.

Can probably go on and on...these were just a few thoughts off the top of my head, feel free to post comments below.

Although a brewery can’t please everyone’s pallet; constructive criticism and feedback are typically taken seriously. Please be mindful that you can also take steps in helping local breweries make amazing craft brews and solidify opportunities to make locally made beer taste even better in the future.

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My fiancé and I both love to visit different craft breweries as we travel. We stopped in the brewery after having dinner in town based on the beer selection shared on their website. We were very glad that we chose this brewery! The owners and staff were very welcoming and treated us and other guests with the same hospitality you would expect visiting someone's home! The beer was amazing, perhaps the best Hefeweizen either of us have ever had. My fiancé loves sours and typically I hate them. We tried the sauerkraut sour at New Paltz Brewing and we both loved it! Worth the stop if you like good beer and great people.